Misbah to lead Pakistan A

Misbah-ul-Haq has been appointed captain of the Pakistan A squad for the tour of Australia in July. The selectors decided against naming Hasan Raza for the post, reportedly due to an incident in Abu Dhabi in May.

Raza led Pakistan A to victory in the Eurasia Cup in Abu Dhabi but was guilty of violating the code of conduct along with three other players, for travelling to Dubai without permission from the manager. Two other notable exclusions from the squad are openers Taufeeq Umar and Yasir Hameed, as the selectors felt the need to try out new players.

"Players like Yasir Hameed and Taufiq Umar have been tried and tested at the highest level which is why we decided to bring in some new players in their place to give them valuable exposure," Wasim Bari, the chairman of selectors told The News. Bari added that Misbah was handed the captaincy in order to try out a new player in his role.

The squad contains a lot of deserving players who have performed consistently in the domestic circuit. They include fast bowler Wasim Khan, Fawad Alam, the left-hand batsman and Mohammad Salman, the wicketkeeper. Akhtar Ayub, the fast bowler who impressed in the Under-19 World Cup, has also been included.

Pakistan A will play a series of one-day, four-day and Twenty 20 matches against the A sides of Australia, New Zealand and India at Darwin and Cairns.

Pakistan A Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Bazid Khan (vice-capt), Hasan Raza, Mohammad Hafeez, Rafatullah Mohmand, Shahid Yousuf, Mansoor Amjad, Abdur Rahman, Mohammad Salman, Mohammad Khalil, Fawad Alam, Mohammad Irshad, Wasim Khan, Akhtar Ayub; Reserves: Samiullah Khan, Shahzad Malik and Tahir Khan.